Posts Categorized: Economic Analysis

Description: Business World Columnist Holman Jenkins Jr. on why the pact is mainly about subsidies, not environmental progress. Photo credit: Getty Images. Source: MarketWatch.com – video report Date: June 01, 2017 Link: http://www.marketwatch.com/video/opinion-journal-the-paris-climate-con/AF124BBD-86EB-40A7-A6D5-185AB8F6CC03.html Questions for discussion: What does Holman Jenkins Jr. say about the agreement? Do you think the decision to withdraw reduces the influence or… Read more »

Description: One of the economy’s biggest mysteries is this: The labor market is the strongest it has been in a decade, yet wages are rising barely faster than inflation. Source: NYTimes.com Date: May 26, 2017 Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/26/upshot/the-question-isnt-why-wage-growth-is-so-low-its-why-its-so-high.html?ref=dealbook&_r=0 Questions for discussion: What does this article say about how and why wages rise? What might the current… Read more »

Description: BNN commentator Andrew McCreath speaks with Johannes Benigni of JBC Energy, who explains why he thinks there’s still too much oil on the market. Source: BNN.ca – video report Date: May 10, 2017 Link: http://www.bnn.ca/video/too-much-oil-supply-in-the-markets-part-one~1129206 Questions for discussion: Summarize the highlights presented in this report. Do you agree with the assessments? What would you… Read more »

Description: It all goes back to 1917. Congress passed a law that year making Puerto Ricans United States citizens. That same law, still on the books today, empowered the island to raise money by issuing tax-exempt bonds. Source: NYTimes.com Date: May 05, 2017 Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/05/business/dealbook/puerto-rico-debt.html?ref=dealbook Questions for discussion: Summarize the reasons for the current financial… Read more »

Description: In his first 100 days as president, Donald J. Trump may have found much of his agenda stymied, like a health care overhaul and a hotly contested immigration order. Source: NYTimes.com Date: April 28, 2017 Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/28/business/dealbook/trump-stocks-100-days-markets.html?ref=business&_r=0 Questions for discussion: What is the significance of stock market behavior during the first 100 days? What… Read more »

Description: Martin Feldstein’s inconvenient truths about the U.S. trade deficit Source: MoneyWatch.com Date: April 28, 2017 Link: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-real-reason-for-the-trade-deficit-us-2017-04-26?siteid=nwtwk Questions for discussion: Summarize the reasons for the current trade deficit? Is it a bad thing? What has to happen for it to be reduced? What do you think will happen over the next year or so?… Read more »

Description: Food security is behind ChemChina’s $43 billion takeover of Syngenta. Source: Fortune.com – video report Date: April 21, 2017 Link: http://for.tn/2pWStmR Questions for discussion: How is this acquisition different from other M&A deals that have taken place in this industry? How do you think Chinese government ownership will influence the firm and the industry… Read more »

Description: Paul Tudor Jones is a reclusive hedge fund legend who never talks to the press. Source: CNBC.com Date: April 21, 2017 Link: http://www.cnbc.com/2017/04/21/hedge-fund-legend-paul-tudor-jones-says-this-chart-is-terrifying-and-should-freak-out-the-fed.html Questions for discussion: Summarize the analysis presented in the report. How much influence do you think Paul Tudor Jones has over investor’s perceptions of risk?

Description: We sat down with Voya Financial CEO Rodney Martin to get the advice he gives his customers about investing long term. Source: Fortune.com – video report Date: April 14, 2017 Link: http://for.tn/2nNgsbE Questions for discussion: Summarize the key points made by Rodney Martin. Which do think is most important to investors today?

Description: Along the cobblestone streets of SoHo, Chanel handbags and Arc’teryx jackets are displayed in shops like museum pieces, harking back to the height of the neighborhood’s trendiness. But rents there are softening, and the number of vacant storefronts is rising. Source: NYTimes.com Date: April 15, 2017 Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/15/business/retail-industry.html?ref=business&_r=0 Questions for discussion: What can management… Read more »